Chapter 297: Don't Push

Yang Chen furrowed his brow slightly and adjusted his clothes. Earlier, he had seen the female PR executives outside, some drowsy, others busy—a scene he hadn't expected to encounter.

Liu Mingyu hurriedly got up from the desk, grabbing a few tissues to quickly wipe down herself, the desk, and the chair. Though everything seemed normal, Liu Mingyu was acutely aware of the lingering aftermath on her face. Anyone with experience would surely notice something was amiss, especially in broad daylight, locked in the office with Yang Chen. It was bound to raise suspicions.

"You almost killed me," Liu Mingyu muttered, twisting Yang Chen's arm in frustration.

Yang Chen sighed softly. "It takes two to tango. Relax, we can say we were discussing work."

"What work needs discussing with you? You're terrible at making up lies!" Liu Mingyu shot Yang Chen a glance.

Just then, a familiar gentle voice came from outside the door.

"Mingyu, are you in there?"

Yang Chen tensed up. It was Mo Qianyi's voice!

Liu Mingyu's legs went weak, her eyes widened with panic, unsure how to respond.

Yang Chen's face flickered with complexity before he silently walked to the door.

"What are you doing?" Liu Mingyu whispered urgently as Yang Chen moved to open the door, her heart racing.

Being seen by her department's regular PR staff was one thing, but being caught by Mo Qianyi, her former boss and current second-in-command of the company, in such a compromising situation? It would leave a terrible impression!

Yang Chen gave her a relaxed smile and then cracked the door open just wide enough. He blinked at Mo Qianyi outside.

Mo Qianyi had assumed Liu Mingyu was napping and hadn't woken up yet. When the door opened, she was surprised to see Yang Chen!

What was this guy doing here at this time in this place?!

"Qianqian, don't just stand there, come in!" Yang Chen murmured softly.

Mo Qianyi, still dazed, followed Yang Chen's gesture and entered the office. Yang Chen quickly closed the door behind her.

Mo Qianyi, tall and elegant as always, wore a white tailored trench coat with a bright red silk scarf tied around her neck. Her long hair was elegantly styled, and she held a folder in her hand, resembling a fashion model strolling through the office. However, it was evident she had come to discuss some work with Liu Mingyu.

At this moment, as soon as Mo Qianyi entered the room, she caught a familiar and somewhat embarrassing scent in the air. She glanced up and saw Liu Mingyu, with her appearance slightly disheveled, particularly her tousled hair and flushed complexion, standing clumsily by the office desk. Papers and files were scattered haphazardly on the desk.

Liu Mingyu's evasive gaze, Yang Chen's feigned seriousness, and the lingering scent of hormones in the air—all these clues weren't lost on Mo Qianyi. With her keen perception and understanding of Yang Chen's character, combined with her own experience, she knew exactly what had just transpired!

Mo Qianyi's face flushed with embarrassment. The situation was incredibly awkward, especially with that annoying man acting as if everything was perfectly normal, even winking at her!

Having worked closely with Yang Chen, Liu Mingyu, and Zhao Hongyan in the PR department before, Mo Qianyi had sensed their close camaraderie. However, she hadn't expected the most composed one among them, Liu Mingyu, to have fallen for him. While feeling a pang of bitterness at her own situation, Mo Qianyi also harbored some resentment towards Yang Chen. How many women had this guy harmed?

Though Mo Qianyi herself was also a third party in a previous relationship, she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable witnessing this scenario unfold.

"Minister Mo, is there something you need?" Liu Mingyu feigned composure, her voice somewhat strained.

Mo Qianyi snapped back to reality. "Oh," she muttered, hastily responding, "There are some financial integration issues in the PR department at the year-end. I wanted to discuss it with you, but it seems... it might not be convenient."

As soon as she said it, Mo Qianyi realized her mistake. What did she mean by 'not convenient'? Of course, it was inconvenient because she had caught Liu Mingyu and Yang Chen in a compromising situation!

Mo Qianyi initially considered pretending ignorance, but now it was too late to backtrack.

Liu Mingyu wanted to find a hole to crawl into. This was disastrous! In Mo Qianyi's eyes, she must now appear like some kind of "vixen." Doing such things with a married man in the office during broad daylight and being caught red-handed—did being a third party have to be this miserable?!

As Liu Mingyu and Mo Qianyi struggled to find the right words, each weighed down by heavy thoughts, Yang Chen walked over to Liu Mingyu's desk and began tidying up the scattered files.

Smiling, Yang Chen addressed Mo Qianyi, "Come over here, there's nothing inconvenient about it. We're all colleagues."

Mo Qianyi stood there in stunned silence for a moment before realizing that Yang Chen was suggesting they clear the air?

Liu Mingyu, still puzzled, looked between Yang Chen and Mo Qianyi, her thoughts in turmoil.

Seeing Mo Qianyi standing there unmoved, Yang Chen sighed and said, "Qianqian, don't just stand there looking clueless. Pretending not to know is deceiving yourself. Besides, do you think I'm the kind of person who sneaks around and doesn't own up to his actions?"

Mo Qian Ni took a deep breath as if gathering courage, then stepped forward. She glared at Yang Chen and then smiled brightly at the frozen Liu Mingyu. "To be honest, I feel a bit uncomfortable too, but I know you must be feeling worse. Being a mistress, being the third wheel, it's tough, right?"

Liu Mingyu felt like her brain cells were insufficient. The situation in front of her exceeded her imagination. From Mo Qian Ni's words, it seemed like she also had some kind of relationship with Yang Chen.

"Minister Mo, are you with him?" Liu Mingyu asked before Mo Qian Ni cut her off.

"Yes, so you don't need to be so shy. Look at me, my skin is thick enough to be shameless."

Yang Chen quickly interrupted Mo Qian Ni. "Qian Qian, what are you saying? That's so harsh. We need to clarify things and face them calmly. Look, I, as the culprit, am standing here openly in front of you. If anyone has thick skin, it should be me."

"You know you have thick skin? It's broad daylight during office hours, and you've come here to fool around. Can't you be more discreet? If it were a more gossip-prone colleague who came today and saw you with Mingyu and smelled this scent, what would happen?" Mo Qian Ni said angrily.

Liu Mingyu suddenly woke up. The "crime scene" wasn't completely cleaned up yet. She hurriedly took out a bottle of air freshener from the drawer and sprayed it around a few times to calm down.

Yang Chen chuckled bitterly. "It's all chemical, spraying too much can harm your health."

"Do I need your spray?!" Liu Mingyu gritted her teeth but then realized she was still in front of Mo Qian Ni and facing another seemingly extraordinary "comrade." She felt like she was going crazy.

Mo Qian Ni sighed. From her initial panic and excitement, she gradually calmed down. In fact, Yang Chen had mentioned having more than one lover before, so she was somewhat prepared. With a bitter smile, she said to Liu Mingyu, "None of us are legitimate, so you don't need to be so nervous around me. To put it nicely, we are 'comrades' in openness; to put it bluntly, we're all fox spirits of the same kind. So we are equals here; don't feel like you're at a disadvantage. If anyone is to blame, blame this guy. Even a rabbit wouldn't refuse its own burrow; he's had his fill everywhere."

Liu Mingyu found Mo Qian Ni's words surprisingly reasonable. Since Mo Qian Ni was also a third party, what made her any different? Involuntarily, a sense of closeness grew between the two women.

Seeing the bitter helplessness in the two women he loved, Yang Chen felt deeply moved. There was no fairness in this world, especially in matters of love between men and women, which had always been complex and unclear.

The atmosphere remained silent for a while, and Yang Chen didn't know how to break it. Finally, tentatively, he asked, "How about we go out for dinner tonight? My treat, we can have whatever you like."

Mo Qian Ni and Liu Mingyu shot him almost simultaneous cold and unfriendly glances.

"Do you think inviting us to dinner will make everything okay?" Mo Qian Ni asked sharply.

"Are we so easily placated and deceived? Do you think we're three-year-old girls?" Liu Mingyu added.

Yang Chen frustratedly ran his hand through his hair. "Ladies, can we not do this? I'm at my wit's end here. Just say something! I know I've often acted like a beast, but I've never wanted to deceive or hide my feelings from you. I don't know how we ended up like this. I've just followed my feelings to this point. Whatever hurt I've caused, it hurts me too. I don't know how to explain to you both. All I can say is, you can hit me, you can curse me, you can dislike me, but please don't hate me because I love you both. I promise, aside from the spouse's name on a marriage certificate, whatever you want, if I have it, it's yours!"

After baring his soul with these words, Yang Chen felt like lighting up a cigarette but remembered they were in an office. He withdrew his hand sullenly, pacing in circles. This was too frustrating. Had he ever been this miserable over a woman during his days abroad? Love really wasn't a good thing. Even if others called him a deity, he couldn't sort this out!

Mo Qian Ni and Liu Mingyu listened quietly, then both turned their heads away, wiping their eyes.

"Are you the head of the Women's Federation or a specialist in female psychology? Why are you giving us therapy sessions? We're not incapable of accepting reality. What's your hurry?" Mo Qian Ni retorted.

"Yeah, we were just discussing what to eat tonight. We'll share our joys and sorrows over a drink, right, Mingyu?" Mo Qian Ni winked at Liu Mingyu.

Liu Mingyu nodded and smiled brightly, "I know a great Italian restaurant. Let's go there, Minister Mo."

"Don't call me Minister, just call me Qian Ni," Mo Qian Ni said with a smile.

"Alright, Qian Ni," Liu Mingyu chuckled softly, seeming much more relaxed.

Seeing this, Yang Chen knew that at least for now, the two women had temporarily resolved their tension. It was some comfort to him. He approached with a grin and asked, "Take me along, I'll treat."

Mo Qian Ni shot him a look. "What business does a man have joining us for dinner? Why should we let you treat us? It's not like we can't afford it ourselves. If you have nothing else, you should go back quickly. We still need to discuss work."

"Hey, how can you leave out your man like that?" Yang Chen protested discontentedly.

"You're the one. Insistently wanting to join us for dinner, do you also want us to wait on you hand and foot after eating?" Liu Mingyu retorted.

"If that's the case, of course, that would be great," Yang Chen chuckled, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Liu Mingyu widened her eyes and exchanged a glance with Mo Qian Ni. Together, they forcefully pushed Yang Chen towards the door.

"Out you go! We need to work!"

"Don't push, I can walk out on my own, can't I?!" Yang Chen chuckled helplessly. Since when did he become unwelcome like this?!

Once Yang Chen was outside the door, the two women looked at each other and saw reflections of themselves in each other's eyes, bursting into light laughter.